“Early Birds” Catch The Fish–Summertime Fishing on Florida’s Big Bend

There are several reasons to get up early and go fishing on hot summer days.  One, if you’re fishing from one of our busy scalloping areas (Steinhatchee, Keaton Beach, St. Marks), you’ll beat the crowds to the water.  Another, the weather is more likely to be calm, unlike the afternoons when thunderstorms usually develop. The water temperatures will also be cooler — and finally, the fish will be hungrier!

As summertime progresses, the Big Bend grass flats come alive with bait fish, like mullet, white bait (sardines, glass minnows) and pinfish.  As the sun comes up over the horizon, predators like redfish and seatrout start hunting for breakfast, so you need to be along the shallow shoreline waiting for the feeding to begin.  Look for flashing pinfish in the water–or even better, jumping or schooling mullet.  Don’t be afraid to get close to shore (if the tide’s rising), as that’s where these predators lurk.  That being the case, this is the perfect time to fish from paddle (or pedal) craft like canoes or kayak or shallow draft boats.

For a good recipe for redfish, try this one—Redfish On The Half Shell